Govt to remove entry fee for DTH

The government is considering a proposal to remove the entry fee and bank guarantee totalling Rs 50 crore as well as scaling down the 10 per cent revenue share agreement in its Ku band direct-to-home (DTH) television policy.

As per the present guidelines, companies applying for a DTH licence are required to pay an entry fee of Rs. 10 crore and a bank guarantee of Rs 40 crore for 10-year licence period.

This move comes at a time when the much-publicised DTH policy announced in November 2000 failed to attract broadcasting companies. Since the announcement of the policy only one company called Space Television has applied for a licence.

According to industry analysts the broadcasting industry wants the government to waive the 10 per cent annual revenue sharing clause for 5-10 years till a cost-intensive DTH venture becomes financially viable.

A typical DTH platform with about 100-odd channels would require investment of around $500 million. The 10th five year plan working group of the Planning Commission had also asked the government to review the DTH policy.